America needs to get ready for a world after Roe
The Supreme Court's decision to hear Dobbs vs. Jackson tells us there is every reason to believe that real change is coming
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Reading the polls, it’s clear that most people don’t understand Roe v. Wade at all, which is significant as the landmark case that set up America’s extreme abortion policy will be debated Wednesday at the Supreme Court when Dobbs v. Jackson is argued. While people might say they support Roe, their minds change when they read the fine print because if you like limits on abortion of any kind, you don’t like Roe.
U.S. abortion policy dictated by judicial fiat allows for abortion through all 9 months, for any reason at all, and sometimes with taxpayer funding, putting us far outside the abortion laws of almost every country in the world. But that could change through Mississippi’s efforts to defend a law limiting abortion before a baby can survive outside the womb. Such a change would be historic as since 1973 the courts have not allowed limits on abortion before viability.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}And there is every reason to believe that real change is coming. The Supreme Court could have continued to ignore the issue of abortion, but instead took up a case that offers a direct challenge to the status quo.
Anti-abortion activists protest outside of the U.S. Supreme Court during the March for Life in Washington on Jan. 18, 2019. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
In light of this historic moment, America needs to get ready for a world after Roe, or at least Roe as I and my generation have known it from before our births. We are the abortion survivors, the Pro-Life Generation, who have lost one-quarter of our number and who are committed to seeing life defended in law and in service. And we believe we were born to be the Post-Roe Generation.
In a post-Roe, Post-Dobbs America, a renewed commitment to serving women and their children, born and preborn, will be crucial to ensuring that a safety net is in place.
In a post-Roe, Post-Dobbs America, a renewed commitment to serving women and their children, born and preborn, will be crucial to ensuring that a safety net is in place.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}SUPREME COURT'S MISSISSIPPI ABORTION CASE – HERE'S WHY THIS CASE IS SO IMPORTANT
The abortion lobby’s own data tells us that 3 out of 4 women cite concerns about money or how caring for a baby would impact work or education when they consider abortion. Those fears can be addressed through practical help at the community level.
Pro-choice and anti-abortion demonstrators rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 1, 2021, in Washington. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Consider Texas as a good example of law and service working together. It’s no coincidence that while the state has one of the most stringent pro-life laws in the nation it also has the greatest investment into nonviolent resources for women -- $100 million and counting. The Lone Star state models pro-life laws and pro-woman support working together, though they are not the only state taking those needs seriously.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Supreme Court could have continued to ignore the issue of abortion, but instead took up a case that offers a direct challenge to the status quo.
Many private organizations have also risen to the challenge of serving those who need help. For example, Students for Life’s "Campaign for Abortion Free Cities" operates as a bridge in communities as we’ve been going door to door telling women about those nearby ready to help, including through our Standing with You initiative that links women and families in crisis with programs located close to them on campus and in communities as well as federal services.
But just as important as addressing women’s economic concerns, is confronting the abortion sales pitch that undermines women’s confidence.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Victorian misogynists told women they could not handle work and family, so they should stay at home. Today’s narrow-minded abortion enthusiast tells women the same thing but insists that women stay on the job. Both sell women short and insult us by insisting that we are incapable of handling more than one thing at a time. Pro-life women reject such tepid "feminism."
In an amicus brief SFLA filed along with Human Coalition Action, another great service organization, we note: "Amici adamantly reject any pretense that women must rely on abortion to further their circumstances or life. Amici advocate on behalf of capable, intelligent, skilled, and strong women facing unexpected pregnancies every day. But what is unexpected is not therefore unwelcome or even necessarily surprising and can lead to great joy with the kind of effort that life requires. Regardless of the sometimes considerable challenges they face, they are able. Able to parent, able to work, able to succeed, able to obtain medical care, able to create incredible lives for themselves and their children. We are women. We believe in women. We serve women. We advocate for women."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}As a woman, leading an organization primarily of women – and many of us parents – I reject the notion that women are less capable of balancing work and career than their male counterparts. And as part of a community committed to helping women transition into motherhood, I know that I am surrounded by others ready to lend a hand.
It will take time to confront the abortion mindset that turned babies into disposable commodities, telling a nation to eliminate those who might suffer rather than addressing the suffering. In a Post-Roe America, we must renew our commitment to helping those in crisis around us. But many like me are already hard at work, knowing that one day, Roe will be no more.